British supermarkets and convenience retailers have completed a trial for age verification technology that prevents the selling of alcohol to underage customers.
Co-Op, Tesco, Asda and Morrisons all launched trials with technology from Yoti, which used facial scans at self-checkouts to estimate a customer's age. If a customer looked under 25, the checkout would refuse service and alert a staff member to do a manual check.
All the retailers confirmed their support of the digital age verification and said the trial allowed zero underage customers permission to purchase alcohol.
“The BRC has long campaigned for digital age estimation technology to be used to verify a person’s age for the purchase of alcohol. With incidents of violence and abuse against retail staff sharply rising, the technology would help to make stores a safer place to work and shop. Digital forms of age verification can already be used for all other age-restricted products such as tobacco, knives and medicine, and there is no reason this cannot also be extended to alcohol sales,” said Tom Ironside, Director of Business Regulation at the BRC.
Three Bestway Retail stores (Bargain Booze, Tippl and Wine Rack) also completed a trial but had red or green lights alert cashiers as to whether customers needed to present ID or not.
